Kongsberg missile checked for use on F-18s

Norway's Kongberg Gruppen has announced completion of a fit-check with Boeing for use of its joint strike missile on Boeing's F-18E/F fighter. The fit-check showed the missile's compatibility with the aircraft and the company's plan to conduct wind tunnel testing early next year. "Kongsberg is proud to work with Boeing to offer JSM capability on F-18," said Harald Ånnestad, president Kongsberg Defense Systems."The completion of the fit-check on F/A-18F further validates the JSM compatibility with existing fleet of aircraft and provides a near term, strong capability against advanced threats." The Joint Strike Missile is a long-range weapon with a low radar signature, extreme sea-skimming capability and variable speed. It features autonomous target recognition with identification of targets to ship class levels, a target library with hit-point and fuze setting data and an advanced engagement planning system which exploits the geography in the area of operations. Kongsberg said the missile system also employs a two-way networking data for target update and re-targeting.